Quack, quack

The Fourth Way is one of the few systems that view man as "unfinished", or "open-ended" - as opposed to non-humans, which are "finished", or "closed". This is, perhaps, the most powerful and significant concept in those teachings, for without it, man is no better than the animals, and animals do not have the possibility of conscious evolution within one lifetime.

The idea, further elaborated, suggests that, with certain efforts, he might begin to "complete himself" intentionally, to do what Life is trying to do with him, over much larger time scales than just one lifetime, but do it himself, within his own given lifetime.

Completing himself, suggests, becoming WHAT he truly is - a fully-conscious Human Being, as opposed to a half-asleep, usually-distracted, relatively-aimless, half-human or pseudo-human or potential-human.

Unfortunately, those systems have either forgotten, or never knew or understood the relationship, "I's" have to the question of being "unfinished". Those systems suggest that, even with his "many I's" - within which, he is, virtually 100% of the time - he is always, still, open-ended. But this is incorrect. While fully engrossed in his "many I's" - again, all the time! - right then, and then, and then, he is operating, functionally, as a closed-system. That is, the energy which vivifies him, and allows him to operate at all, is circulating within a closed-circuit, and nothing ever (not once in a while, NEVER!) escapes the closed-circuit. That is, in no uncertain terms, if it walks like a duck, acts like a duck, talks like a duck - it must BE a duck; not a man, a duck.

Quack, quack.